Within the scope of the presented work a hull girder ultimate strength analyses of the double hull oil tanker structures damaged by the collision or grounding is performed. An incremental-iterative progressive collapse analysis method prescribed by the forthcoming IACS Harmonized Common Structural Rules (H-CSR) is used for determination of the ultimate vertical bending moment and collapse sequence of the considered structures. Three characteristic variants of the oil tanker main frame cross sections of a different geometry and size (Aframax, Suezmax and VLCC) are considered. The position of a ship's side and/or bottom damage is defined in accordance with the IACS H-CSR. Proposed analytical formulations of the relationship between reduction of the hull girder ultimate vertical bending moment (with respect to the undamaged state) and damage size are based on the results of a systematic variation of a ship's side or bottom damage size. Finally, comparison of the collapse sequences determined for the undamaged and damaged state in upright position (defined by IACS H-CSR) of the considered structure of the Aframax ship example is performed.


Temporal and spatial variation of histone
methylation is an important factor in mammalian development.
Deciphering the details of such epigenetic phenomena has the
potential to enrich both stem cell biology and therapeutics, as
well as offer insight into various pathologies. While the enzymatic
machinery responsible for these transitions is well known, it is
their localization to specific genomic regions that controls cell
fate, and this has largely remained a mystery. The goal of this
thesis was to use an integrative genomics approach to elucidate the
role of cis elements in the establishment of repressive chromatin
domains. To this effect, we determined the genetic basis for
localization of Polycomb repressive complexes (PRCs) in mammalian
embryonic stem (ES) cells. First, by generating genomewide
chromatin state maps in mouse and human by high throughput
sequencing, we utilized a comparative and motif dictionary approach
to computationally identify potential Polycomb recruitment
elements. Surprisingly, we found that PRC recruitment is best
explained by localization to clusters of unmethylated CpG
dinucleotides, elements originally associated with gene activation.
Next, in a series of transgenic assays involving human and E. coli
sequence, we were able to reconstitute the chromatin state of an
epigenetic memory element in mouse ES cells. Finally, we found that
as somatic identity is reset during induced pluripotent stem (iPS)
cell reprogramming, these same elements are central to a
coordinated response in which active chromatin domains are
established prior to and independently of transcription. Taken
together, these studies highlight the role of a particular cis
element in the establishment of both active and repressive
chromatin domains. Furthermore, this dynamic underscores how a
static genetic element can be utilized to enable the
chromatin-based plasticity required of stem cell differentiation
and lineage specification.


This article explores the prospects for joint leadership by the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) in an evolving multipolar world. Arguing that multipolarity leads to a highly differentiated global system, it conceptualizes global order as negotiated order revolving around issue-specific global governance arrangements subject to constant negotiation processes. In this context, transatlantic leadership depends not only on a US and EU willingness to lead individually and collectively, but especially on their capacity to define joint purposes and mobilize followers in issue areas relevant to global order. To test whether the two parties fulfil these conditions, the article first engages in a discourse analysis comparing US and EU leadership ambitions and visions of world order as expressed in their global strategies. US and EU rhetoric is subsequently compared to their (inter)action in the major global policy domain of climate change, focusing on the negotiations of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The article finds that opportunities for US-EU leadership generally exist, but that sustained future leadership will depend on renewed commitments and tend to be, rather than cross-cutting and relatively stable as during the Cold War, issue-specific and contingent, necessitating regular negotiation with other major global forces.


A critical need for industrial recommender systems is the ability to evaluate recommendation policies offline, before deploying them to production. Unfortunately, widely used off-policy evaluation methods either make strong assumptions about how users behave that can lead to excessive bias, or they make fewer assumptions and suffer from large variance. We tackle this problem by developing a new estimator that mitigates the problems of the two most popular off-policy estimators for rankings, namely the position-based model and the item-position model. In particular, the new estimator, called INTERPOL, addresses the bias of a potentially misspecified position-based model, while providing an adaptable bias-variance trade-off compared to the item-position model. We provide theoretical arguments as well as empirical results that highlight the performance of our novel estimation approach. Off-policy for learning-to-rank interpolating the


Recent studies have demonstrated the power of modeling real world data as heterogeneous information networks (HINs) consisting of multiple types of entities and relations. Unfortunately, most of such studies (e.g., similarity search) confine discussions on the networks with only a few entity and relationship types, such as DBLP. In the real world, however, the network schema can be rather complex, such as Freebase. In such HINs with rich schema, it is often too much burden to ask users to provide explicit guidance in selecting relations for similarity search. In this paper, we study the problem of relation similarity search in schema-rich HINs. Under our problem setting, users are only asked to provide some simple relation instance examples (e.g., 〈Barack Obama, John Kerry〉 and 〈George W. Bush, Condoleezza Rice〉) as a query, and we automatically detect the latent semantic relation (LSR) implied by the query (e.g., "president vs. secretary-ofstate"). Such LSR will help to find other similar relation instances (e.g., 〈Bill Clinton, Madeleine Albright〉). In order to solve the problem, we first define a new meta-path-based relation similarity measure, RelSim, to measure the similarity between relation instances in schema-rich HINs. Then given a query, we propose an optimization model to efficiently learn LSR implied in the query through linear programming, and perform fast relation similarity search using RelSim based on the learned LSR. The experiments on real world datasets derived from Freebase demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of our approach.


Abstract Objectives: This study assesses the effectiveness of a GOSCE in teaching medical students clinical communication, as well as group collaboration and peer feedback. Methods: The GOSCE was administered during the Internal Medicine clerkship. Groups consisted of 4–6 students and one faculty member. Students completed pre- and post-GOSCE surveys to assess confidence in clinical communication and a GOSCE evaluation to rate the overall experience. Pre- and post-GOSCE program survey scores were compared, and the mean score and standard deviation of the GOSCE evaluation was calculated. Results: Students perceived improvement in their general (Mean 4.49–4.57, p < .0001), case-specific (3.61–3.84, p < .0001) and group clinical communication (3.75–4.09, p < .0001) skills. Students agreed or strongly agreed that the GOSCE taught them something new (91.20%), made them more comfortable in giving (64.31%) and receiving (66.57%) feedback and working with a group (64.22%). Students found the GOSCE to be as effective as an OSCE (70.97%). Conclusions: A GOSCE is a valuable resource for use in formative assessment of clinical communication, and it offers the benefit of group collaboration and peer feedback. These findings support the broader use of GOSCEs in undergraduate medical education.


Recycling of waste concrete is beneficial and necessary from the viewpoint of environmental preservation and effective utilization of resources. The carbon fiber reinforced polymer tendon (CFRP tendon) has been widely used in concrete structures due to its high-strength, lightweight, good erosion-resistance, diamagnetism and anti-fatigue. The compressive behavior of recycled-concrete-segment/lump filled steel tubular columns with inner CFRP tendons are investigated in this paper. The formula of ultimate capacities of the columns under axial compression has been derived based on unified strength theory. Good agreement can be found from the comparison of the analytical results obtained in this paper and experimental data. Parametric studies are carried out to evaluate the effects of intermediate principal stress, mixture ratio of the recycled concrete and reinforcement ratio on the bearing capacities of the columns.


High rates of calf mortality in the first 12 months of life, results in significant economic losses in Europe and the USA. Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) accounts for the largest proportion of calf mortality. There is a paucity of literature concerning the host response to BRD. In a controlled challenge study in artificially reared dairy calves [155 (S.D. 14) kg], the influence of the host response to bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) was examined. At AFBI Holstein-Friesian calves were either challenged with BRSV (n=12) or mock challenged with phosphate buffer saline (n=6). Calves were euthanised on day 7 post-challenge. Bronchial lymph nodes were collected and flash-frozen at −80 °C. RNA was extracted and sent to the University of Missouri's DNA Core Facility for RNA-Seq library preparation and sequencing. Sequenced reads were adapter trimmed, quality assessed using FastQC and aligned to the bovine genome (UMD 3.1) using STAR. Differential gene expression analysis was performed using EdgeR, and pathway and gene ontology analyses were carried out using g:Profiler and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA). There was a clear separation between BRSV challenged and control calves based on log2 fold gene expression changes, despite an observed mild clinical manifestation of the disease. There were 934 differentially expressed genes (DEG) (P 2) between the BRSV challenged and control calves. Over-represented pathways and gene ontology terms among the DEG were associated with immune responses and included: GO:0051607 defense response to virus, the KEGG pathway Influenza A and the IPA pathway Interferon Signaling.


Background and Objective: Nostalgia-Proneness is defined as a state of eager joy and happiness mixed with sadness. Students who are non-native to a region and are away from their families tend to experience a sense of "homesickness" that is associated with nostalgia for several reasons such as being unfamiliar with the university environment or the culture of the region. Therefore, given the role of nostalgia in the personal, interpersonal and mental health, it is essential to measure this variable among college students. The aim of this study was to examine the validity and reliability of the Nostalgia-Proneness scale in the students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. Materials and Methods: The present study was a cross-sectional validation research effort. It was conducted in 2015 on a group of 203 of medical students in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences who were selected through convenient sampling. After investigating content validity of Nostalgia-Proneness scale, the correlations between the scores and the overall score and the subscales were used. Furthermore, exploratory factor analysis was performed to determine the factor structure of the scale. Finally, internal consistency and reliability were established via Cronbachs alpha coefficient and test-retest, respectively. Results: Item-score correlations varied from 0.20 to 0.60 and were significant (p less-than 0.001). Exploratory factor analysis confirmed the scale as having four factors: (1) Personal nostalgia; (2) Interpersonal nostalgia; (3) Cultural nostalgia; and (4) Virtual nostalgia. In total, factor loadings explained 63.24 percent of variance of total items. Cronbachs alpha coefficient was 0.83 while the half-split reliability coefficient was equal to 0.75. Conclusion: The results indicated the instrument enjoys sufficient reliability and validity among students. Therefore, the scale can be used in students of medical sciences. Key words: Nostalgia-Proneness, Validity, Reliability, Students, Isfahan Funding: This article did not have any funds. Conflict of interest: None declared. Ethical approval: The Ethics Committee of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences approved the study. How to cite this article: Shafiee Z, Ghamarani A. Psychometric Characteristics of Nostalgia-Proneness in Students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2015. J Rafsanjan Univ Med Sci 2017; 16(2): 131-44. [Farsi]


This paper focuses on the bodily experiences and attitudes toward the body in suicidal individuals. It is argued that bodily experiences and attitudes toward the body, such as rejection of the body, detachment, numbness, physical anhedonia, and lack of protection can facilitate acts of self-destruction. This argument is supported by theories of developmental psychology, theories on suicide, and empirical data. It is demonstrated that suicidal individuals experience their body differently from other populations and that these are related to suicidal behavior.


Disk swelling in patients with hypoparathyroidism has often been attributed to papilledema but rarely to optic neuritis. Although we are reporting a patient with hypoparathyroidism in whom optic neuritis developed, a causal relationship is not yet clear. The patient may have had ischemie optic neuropathy concomitant with hypoparathyroidism or caused by tetanic vasospasm or calcification of optic nerve nutrient vessels.


Astri-Horn is a Small-Sized Telescope (SST) for very-high energy gamma-ray astronomy installed in Italy at the INAF "M.C. Fracastoro" observing station (Mt. Etna, Sicily). The ASTRI-Horn telescope is characterized by a dual-mirror optical system and a curved focal surface covered by SiPM sensors managed by a innovative fast front-end electronics.
Dedicated studies were performed to verify the feasibility of the calibration through muons on the relatively small size of the primary mirror (~4 m diameter), as in the case of larger Cherenkov telescopes. A number of tests were performed using simulations of the atmospheric showers with the CORSIKA package and of the telescope response with a dedicated simulator.
In this contribution we present a preliminary analysis of muon events detected by ASTRI-Horn during the regular scientific data taking performed in December 2018 and March 2019. These muon events validate the results obtained with the simulations and definitively confirm the feasibility of calibrating the ASTRI-Horn SST telescope with muons.


In this paper, we first comment on the recent (1996) report of the Advisory Commission to Study the Consumer Price Index, appointed by the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, and the recommendations it contains. We then describe some of the initiatives currently underway at the Bureau of Labor Statistics -- some of which were undertaken before the appearance of the Advisory Commission's report, others of which are part of a Consumer Price Index improvement initiative that was included as part of the President's 1998 budget proposal -- which attempted to address the bias issues that were highlighted by the Advisory Commission.


Background : Sustainable Development Goal number three call for complete reversal in the incidence of malaria by 2030. Malaria however remains a health priority in sub-Saharan Africa, with children under five experiencing the highest morbidity and mortality. In clinical settings, management of malaria cases has primarily been  centred on case definition, giving minimal consideration to the asymptomatic  individuals who remain a major reservoir since they do not seek care. In malaria endemic areas, infants are likely to remain asymptomatic since they have partial immunity acquired from the mother. Objective : To determine the proportion of infants with positive parasitemia and  describe their clinical and demographic characteristics. Design : A cross-sectional study. Setting : Webuye District Hospital, Western Kenya. Subjects : Three hundred and eighty four infants. Results : Prevalence of malaria parasitemia among enrolled infants was 61%. Infants born to housewife mothers, born to mothers who attended ANC during pregnancy; those weaned late or with family history of sickle cell disease were more likely to have malaria parasitemia with p-values of 0.031,0.015,0.007, and 0.025  respectively. Conclusion : Prevalence of malaria parasitemia among asymptomatic infants in  Webuye (Western Kenya) remains high.


Tumors, trauma, and congenital defects require volume restoration of soft tissues. Tissue engineering provides an alternative source for substituting these defects. Cell encapsulation into hydrogels provides a three-dimensional microenvironment. Spheroids of cells provide close packing and increase cell-to-cell contacts resulting in differentiation. Gelatin is a natural polymer with low immunogenicity and preserved amino acid motifs for cell adhesion and proliferation. In the present study, a soft photo-crosslinked gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) hydrogel with long in vitro lifetime was synthesized. Stem cells (dental pulp derived, DPSC) and endothelial cells (umbilical cord derived, HUVEC) were formed into spheroids to induce prevascular network formation and encapsulated into GelMA (10% weight/volume). Results showed high cell viability, better gel mechanical properties, and longer HUVEC sprouting with spheroids compared to the same combination of cells. Altogether, the photo-crosslinked GelMA hydrogels with DPSC and HUVEC spheroids provided a promising tissue engineering and vascularization strategy in vitro .


INTRODUCTION
The inguinal hernia repair has been a controversial area in the surgical practice ever since it has been conceived. The fact that numerous different procedures are in use reflects the complexity of inguinal hernia and its repair.

AIM
The purposes of this study were to describe Dulucq's technique and the modifications of using 3-D mesh in laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal inguinal hernia repair.

METHODS
Surgical technique of laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal hernia repair is detailed on the text.

CONCLUSION
Laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal is preferred over transabdominal preperitoneal hernia as the peritoneum is not violated. The dissection must always be done with the same stages, without monopolar diathermy and the patient in a slight Trendelenburg position. Following these recommendations, the laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal hernioplasty is feasible with fewer intra-abdominal complications.


Background: Patients receiving the direct thrombin inhibitor dabigatran may have selected anticoagulation assays performed as part of routine care. The effect of dabigatran on the international normalized ratio (INR), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), thrombin time (TT), and fibrinogen requires clarification. Objective: To describe the effect of dabigatran on selected assays in North America and the United Kingdom. Methods: Pooled normal plasma enriched with dabigatran at concentrations of 25, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150, 200, 300, 400, and 500 ng/mL were sent blinded to 19 centers in the US, the UK, and Canada to assess the effect of dabigatran on routine coagulation screening tests, the INR, aPTT, TT, and fibrinogen. Results: Data were returned from 16 centers. For effects on INR, Neoplastine CI Plus and Simplastin HTF were the most sensitive and Thromborel S the least sensitive to increasing dabigatran concentrations. For the aPTT, all reagents demonstrated decreasing sensitivity to increasing dabigatran concentrations. Measured fibrinogen either demonstrated no change or factitious decrease with increasing dabigatran concentrations. Commercial TT methods were very sensitive to low concentrations of dabigatran, with 9 of 10 reporting sites exceeding test limits at dabigatran concentrations of 100 ng/mL. Conclusions: The INR, aPTT, and TT rise as dabigatran concentrations increase. Both the INR and aPTT increase in a linear pattern with marginal slopes, creating challenges in using these assays as reliable means for assessing the amount of dabigatran present. The commercial TT assay is very sensitive at low concentrations of dabigatran. Fibrinogen test results may be either unaffected or lower in the presence of dabigatran.


This paper reports findings of a study in 2004 of the development of specialist services for older people in the National Health Service (NHS) in England, as recommended in the Department of Health's National Service Framework for Older People (NSF-OP). The study was funded by the Department of Health as part of a programme of research to explore the Framework's implementation. Information was collected through a questionnaire survey about the nature of specialist developments at three levels of the NHS: strategic health authorities (SHAs), provider Trusts, and service units. This produced an overview of developments and a frame from which to select detailed case studies. Analysis of the survey data showed that there were variations in the way that the NSF-OP was being interpreted and implemented. In particular, there was inconsistency in the interpretation of the NSF-OP's anti-ageism standard; some concluded that the strategy discouraged services exclusively for older people, others that it encouraged dedicated provision for them. The tension between creating age-blind and age-defined services was played out in the context of existing service structures, which had been shaped over decades by many local and national influences. These conceptual and historical factors need to be taken into account if services are to change, as developments are shaped by 'bottom-up' local processes as well as 'top-down' policy initiatives. In particular, the tension inherent in the NSF-OP between negative and positive ageism, and its varied interpretations at local levels needs to be taken into account when evaluating progress in implementation.


A new distribution, the gamma-half normal distribution, is proposed and studied. Various structural properties of the gamma-half normal distribution are derived. The shape of the distribution may be unimodal or bimodal. Results for moments, limit behavior, mean deviations and Shannon entropy are provided. To estimate the model parameters, the method of maximum likelihood estimation is proposed. Three real-life data sets are used to illustrate the applicability of the gamma-half normal distribution.


This thesis was submitted to the Department of History of the University of Kansas in partial fulfillment of the requirements for departmental honors.


Background: Almost all of the traditional calcaneal fracture minimally invasive internal fixations (MIIF) require a lot of intraoperative fluoroscopy, moreover, the fracture recovery of many patients is not considered ideal. Therefore, we designed a new surgical procedure through the digital surgical simulation and made patient-specific instrument (PSI) for calcaneal fracture patients before surgery, and then we manage the operation through the assistance of PSI during the whole process. The purpose of this study is to verify whether the PSI assisted calcaneal fracture minimally invasive internal fixation can carry out preoperative plan accurately and quickly. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the Sanders type III or IV fresh calcaneal fracture patients who had been performed MIIF assisted by the PSI in our hospital during January 2016 to December 2018. We collected and analyzed perioperative data including intraoperative fluoroscopy times, whether the internal fixation actual usage (IFAU) same as preoperative plan, surgical time and situation of complication; and collected and analyzed the data of preoperative actual measurement, preoperative-plan and postoperative actual measurement from X-rays and CT, including Böhler angle, Gissane angle, subtalar joint width, calcaneus valgus angle and calcaneal volume overlapping ratio. All patients had been followed up and their AOFAS score had been recorded. Then we performed statistical analyses. Results: The intraoperative fluoroscopy times was 3.95±1.78, the condition of IFAU in 16 patients (16 feet) was the same as preoperative plan, the surgery time was 28.16±10.70 min, no patients developed complications. The preoperative plan Böhler angle, Gissane angle, subtalar joint width and calcaneus valgus angle were not significant different from the postoperative; the preoperative Böhler angle, Gissane angle, subtalar joint width and calcaneus valgus angle were all significant different from the postoperative. The calcaneal volume overlapping ratio with preoperative design was 91.2±2.3%. The AOFAS score of all patients gradually increased as time goes on, and difference of the AOFAS scores between all time-points were significant. Conclusions: The new patient-specific instrument assisted calcaneal fracture minimally invasive internal fixation can carry out the preoperative plan accurately and quickly.


Council. This research may support or challenge prevailing policy orthodoxy. Therefore, the views expressed in this paper are solely those of the authors and may differ from official Bank of Canada views. No responsibility for them should be attributed to the Bank. www.bank-banque-canada.ca Staff Working Paper/Document de travail du personnel 2018-9 The "Too Big to Fail" Subsidy in Canada: Some Estimates


Abstract. The Arctic is rapidly changing, disrupting biogeochemical cycles and the
processing, delivery and sedimentation of carbon (C), in linked
terrestrial–aquatic systems. In this investigation, we coupled a
hydrogeomorphic assessment of catchment soils, sediments and plants with a
recent lake sediment sequence to understand the source and quality of organic
carbon present in three Arctic upland lake catchments on Disko Island, located
just south of the low–high Arctic transition zone. This varied permafrost
landscape has exposed soils with less vegetation cover at higher altitudes,
and lakes received varying amounts of glacial meltwater inputs. We provide
improved isotope and biomarker source identifications for palaeolimnological
studies in high-latitude regions, where terrestrial vegetation is at or close
to its northerly and altitudinal range limit. The poorly developed catchment
soils lead to lake waters with low dissolved organic carbon (DOC)
concentrations (≤1.5 mg L−1). Sedimentary carbon/nitrogen
(C/N) ratios, the C isotope composition of organic matter
(δ13Corg) and biomarker ratios (n-alkanes, n-alkanols,
n-alkanoic acids and sterols) showed that sedimentary organic matter (OM) in
these lakes is mostly derived from aquatic sources (algae and macrophytes). We
used a 210Pb-dated sediment core to determine how carbon cycling in
a lake–catchment system (Disko 2) had changed over recent centuries. Recent
warming since the end of the Little Ice Age (LIA∼1860 CE), which accelerated after ca. 1950, led to melt of glacier
ice and permafrost, releasing nutrients and DOC to the lake and stimulating
pronounced aquatic algal production, as shown by a >10-fold increase in
β-carotene, indicative of a major regime shift. We also demonstrate
that recent increases in catchment terrestrial vegetation cover contributed to
the autochthonous response. Our findings highlight that in Arctic lakes with
sparsely developed catchment vegetation and soils, recent Anthropocene warming
results in pronounced changes to in-lake C processing and the deposition of
more reactive, predominately autochthonous C, when compared with extensively
vegetated low-Arctic systems.


Piston–cylinder interactions account for a significant portion of frictional losses in an internal-combustion engine. This is mainly as the result of significant changes in the operating conditions (the load, the speed and the temperature) as well as the contact geometry and the encountered topography during a typical engine cycle. These changes alter the regime of lubrication which underlies the mechanisms of friction generation. The multi-variate interactive nature of the problem requires quite complex analyses which do not fully replicate the actual in-situ conditions. Therefore, there is a need for direct measurement of cyclic friction under controlled conditions. The paper describes the use of a novel floating-liner arrangement which is capable of direct measurement of friction, its transitory mechanisms, as well as determination of the regime of lubrication.


textabstractIn October 1978 I assumed the position of cardiologist
at the Catharina Hospital in Eindhoven at the time
when the cardiothoracic surgery programm began in
this hospital. At that time I did not know the number of
patients that had to be treated daily. During our fellowship
training in cardiology, particularly in a university
hospitaL there was time to discuss problems with
teachers and to consider solutions. In a large nonacademic
cardiology department like that of the Catharina
hospitaL the situation is different: quick decisions
are necessary.
From 1978 onwards. clinical cardiology changed at
such pace that even some universities had difficulty to
implement new therapeutic developments such as percutaneous
transluminal coronary angioplasty and
thrombolysis. In those early years we had a relatively
small staff which made it difficult to keep up with these
rapid changes. I was in a privileged position. since my
colleagues gave me the opportunity to visit leading
centres and to learn about new developments and implement
them in our daily practice of cardiology. It was
necessary to critically assess the clinical value of these
developments by continuous monitoring and evaluation
of the results.
The fact. that we could start a fellowship programm in
cardiology in 1980 was of great significance. We considered
this a recognition that we were successful in
both implementing and critically assessing these new
developments. In this thesis aspects of new treatment
modalities in modern cardiology are addressed: thrombolysis
and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty.


A newly designed apparatus and process, including dielectrophoresis and adsorption to efficiently remove cadmium species from wastewater, is reported in this study. With this technique, cadmium ions are firstly adsorbed by shell powder particles, which are subsequently trapped and concentrated by a dielectrophoresis process. The factors affecting the metal removal efficiency are systematically investigated, which allows us to determine the optimal operation conditions. Our experimental data indicate that via the adsorption and dielectrophoresis steps, cadmium can be almost completely removed from wastewater as evidenced by the very high removal efficiency of 99.4%. This suggests that our dielectrophoresis-assisted adsorption approach is highly effective for the removal of cadmium, and the technique could be extended to the removal of other heavy metal ions from wastewater as well.


We propose a densely semantically aligned person re-identification (re-ID) framework. It fundamentally addresses the body misalignment problem caused by pose/viewpoint variations, imperfect person detection, occlusion, etc.. By leveraging the estimation of the dense semantics of a person image, we construct a set of densely semantically aligned part images (DSAP-images), where the same spatial positions have the same semantics across different person images. We design a two-stream network that consists of a main full image stream (MF-Stream) and a densely semantically-aligned guiding stream (DSAG-Stream). The DSAG-Stream, with the DSAP-images as input, acts as a regulator to guide the MF-Stream to learn densely semantically aligned features from the original image. In the inference, the DSAG-Stream is discarded and only the MF-Stream is needed, which makes the inference system computationally efficient and robust. To our best knowledge, we are the first to make use of fine grained semantics for addressing misalignment problems for re-ID. Our method achieves rank-1 accuracy of 78.9% (new protocol) on the CUHK03 dataset, 90.4% on the CUHK01 dataset, and 95.7% on the Market1501 dataset, outperforming state-of-the-art methods.


Traditional theories of migration frequently fail to fully explain the real-world patterns of interregional mobility. Empirical studies indicate that individuals may not always migrate for economic reasons such as poor employment and income prospects. Which characteristics drive people to stay or move after job displacement? Using information on establishment closures, we analyse the economic and social determinants of interregional mobility following job loss. We base our empirical analysis on nationwide individual-level register data from Finland for 1997–2015. We find that receiving earnings-based unemployment benefits substantially weakens the economic incentives for interregional mobility. This negative association is particularly strong for the lower educated and those living in more rural areas. Moreover, our results show that the migration decisions of displaced workers are strongly affected by homeownership, differences in regional housing prices, and social connections, as measured by childhood family relations.


Chronic inflammation is a prominent feature of aging and of common age-related diseases, including atherosclerosis, cancer and periodontitis. This volume examines modifiable risk factors for periodontitis and other chronic inflammatory diseases. Oral bacterial communities and viral infections, particularly with cytomegalovirus and other herpesviruses, elicit distinct immune responses and are central in the initiation of periodontal diseases. Risk of disease is dynamic and changes in response to complex interactions of genetic, environmental and stochastic factors over the lifespan. Many modifiable risk factors, such as smoking and excess caloric intake, contribute to increases in systemic markers of inflammation and can modify gene regulation through a variety of biologic mechanisms (e.g. epigenetic modifications). Periodontitis and other common chronic inflammatory diseases share multiple modifiable risk factors, such as tobacco smoking, psychological stress and depression, alcohol consumption, obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and osteoporosis. Interventions that target modifiable risk factors have the potential to improve risk profiles for periodontitis as well as for other common chronic diseases.


This longitudinal, case-control study compares the progression of Small and Large Fibre Neuropathy (SFN and LFN respectively) in T1DM and T2DM and examines determinants of progression. T1DM, T2DM and healthy controls (HC) groups each with 50 subjects were evaluated annually (2014-19). Functional SFN was assessed using the LDIFLARE test in the foot and structural SFN in the cornea [corneal nerve fibre density using confocal microscopy (CCMCNFD)]. LFN was assessed using vibration perception threshold (VPT) and sural nerve conduction velocity (SNCV) and amplitude (SNAP). At year 5 DPN was diagnosed if the Neurology Disability score (NDS) was ≥3 (DPN+). Mean (±SD) age and sex distribution at baseline for T1DM was (41.4±15.0 yr; 27 males), T2DM (54.38±9.1; 25m) and HC (40.7±15.1; 24m). T1DM with DPN+ had a significantly greater decline of LDIFLARE size compared to DPN- [0.15 v 0.08 cm2/yr; p=0.001] and of CCMCNFD (0.16v 0.10 fibres/mm2/yr; p=0.005). In contrast in T2DM there was no difference between DPN+ and DPN- groups in LDIFLARE size (0.22v 0.15cm2/yr; p=0.09) and CCMCNFD (0.23v 0.16 fibres/mm2/yr; p=0.06). Decline in small fibre function and structure in T1DM DPN- was no different from HCs. (LDIFLARE - 0.07cm2/yr; CCMCNFD - 0.05 fibres/mm2/yr) in contrast to all other groups. In T1DM, the decline of LDIFLARE size and CCMCNFD correlated only with HbA1c change (p= There was no significant change of LFN indices (VPT, SNCV and SNAP; p=>0.05) over the 5yrs. This - the first longitudinal comparative study of changes in small fibre nerve structure and function in T1DM and T2DM - demonstrates changes in SFN in both groups that are not paralleled by changes in LFN, supporting the concept that SFN precedes LFN in DPN, It further demonstrates important differences in determinants of progression between T1DM and T2DM; the former being related to glycaemic control and the latter to multiple metabolic factors. Disclosure S. Sharma: None. J. Cross: None. P.R. Vas: None. G. Rayman: None.


Ḥasan ibn Muṣṭafā al-Būsnawī al-Madanī, Hasan Bosnevi is a fruitful poet from the end of 18th and first half of 19th century. More than three hundred songs found in Divan make him one of the most prolific and perhaps the most prolific Bosnian poet in Arabic language. Hasan Bosnevi treated many topics, poetic forms and genres in his Divan. In addition to artistic sensibility, Hasan Bosnevi's songs represent a real treasure of history and culture, especially that of Medina, but also of the entire Hijaz. The purpose of this paper is to present the Divan by a Bosnian who has not been so well known in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and to shed light on the author and his literary opus in Arabic language.


OBJECTIVE
Correct nutritional assessment is essential for leukemia patients after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). This study aimed to investigate the best nutritional assessment method for leukemia patients after HSCT, and find the possible nutritional risk of the patients during the transplantation process in order to intervene in the patients with nutritional risks and undernourished patients timely, so that the entire transplantation process could be successfully completed.

METHODS
A prospective study was performed in 108 leukemia patients after HSCT, and different nutritional assessment methods, including nutritional risk screening 2002 (NRS2002), mini nutritional assessment (MNA), subjective globe assessment (SGA) and malnutritional universal screening tools (MUST), were used. The associations between nutritional status of these patients and nutritional assessment methods were analyzed.

RESULTS
A total of 108 patients completed SGA, and 99 patients completed NRS2002, MNA and MUST. During the treatment process, 85.2% of the patients lost weight, wherein, 50% lost weight greater than 5%, and 42.6% had significantly reduced food intake. For nutritional risk assessment, the positive rates of NRS2002, MNA and MUST were 100%, 74.7% and 63.6%, respectively. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) among the positive rates of NRS2002, MNA and MUST. In undernutrition assessment, the positive rate of SGA (83.3%) was significantly higher than that of MNA (17.2%) (P<0.05), and the incidence rate of nutritional risk among leukemia patients ≤30 years old was greater than that of patients >30 years old (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS
Patients with leukemia were in poor nutritional status during and after HSCT. The leukemia patients ≤30 years old had a greater incidence rate of nutritional risk. As nutritional risk screening tool, the specificity of NRS2002 is not high, but it can be used for evaluating nutritional deficiencies. MNA is a good nutritional risk screening tool, but not an adequate tool for nutritional assessment. If assessment of undernutrition is necessary, the combination of all these screening tools and clinical laboratory indicators should be applied to improve accuracy.


Two cases of pneumatosis cystoides intestinalis occurring in the bypassed small bowel following intestinal bypass are presented. These cases and the recent recording of four others in the literature indicate this may be a common association. Etiology of the pneumatosis is unknown, but it is probably related to fecal reflux into defunctionalized bowel with the attendant alteration of bacterial flora.


This article presents the design, implementation, and measurement of a hint-based cooperative caching file system. Hints allow clients to make decisions based on local state, enabling a loosely coordinated system that is simple to implement. The resulting performance is comparable to that of existing tightly coordinated algorithms that use global state, but with less overhead. Simulations show that the block access times of our system are as good as those of the existing algorithms, while reducing manager load by more than a factor of seven, block lookup traffic by nearly a factor of two-thirds, and replacement traffic a factor of five. To verify our simulation results in a real system with real users, we implemented a prototype and measured its performance for one week. Although the simulation and prototype environments were very different, the prototype system mirrored the simulation results by exhibiting reduced overhead and high hint accuracy. Furthermore, hint-based cooperative caching reduced the average block access time to almost half that of NFS.


For the Ethiopian flower sector, the European Union is currently its most important market. By improving quality of production, logistics and marketing strategies, the sector aims to enter the European retail sector, and some other specific niche markets. However, these market segments also demand more corporate social responsible behavior regarding social and environmental issues. Besides that, there is growing pressure from local civil society organizations, demanding fair social conditions and good environmental management practices. This is not just the case for the Ethiopian flower farmers, but is a growing concern for the sector at a worldwide level. Finally, both at market level as within Ethiopian, the flower sector has to comply with the existing legislation. Partly due to external pressures, these legal framework change in time and define restrictions and conditions regarding environmental and social issues. For the sector, it is important that this legal and institutional framework enables the sustainable development of the sector. Active cooperation between public and private actors, helps to understand each others mandates and agendas, and to define together reasonable requirements that help the sector to improve its sustainability gradually. Altogether, these are important reasons that have led EHPEAs to decide to identify the design of an Ethiopian specific code of Practice for Sustainable flower cultivation. This is one of the strategic issues to be developed within the framework of the Dutch- Ethiopian Horticulture partnership. In order to be able to design this Code of Practice, EHPEA requested the support of the Dutch LEI (Agricultural Economics Research Institute) to facilitate the process. This support consists of a combination of desk research, expert interviews, workshops and data collection in the field. This report presents the results of the data collected through fieldwork in Ethiopia in the period September-December 2006. This fieldwork should not be considered as an alternative to replace an initial audit for. These audits are normally conducted by an external expert in order to analyze the exact level of compliance and gaps of the current practices applied in the farms in comparison to these standards, and take a considerable amount of time for each farm. To do such audits there was no time, nor budget available. This fieldwork has been a quick scan to identify the most pressing environmental and social issues the farm managers must improve their management system. Also, the fieldwork has been useful for the identification of the most urgent gaps between the requirements of the most important international standards on sustainable flower cultivation to be considered by the Ethiopian sector, and the current practices applied. This information is used to create awareness of the representatives being active in the sector. And, the information is used in workshops organized by EHPEA to define the content of the EHPEA Code of Practice.


Glyphosate and paraquat herbicide drift injury to crops may substantially reduce growth or yield. Determining the type and degree of injury is of importance to a producer. This research was conducted to determine whether remote sensing could be used to identify and quantify herbicide injury to crops. Soybean and corn plants were grown in 3.8-L pots to the five- to seven-leaf stage, at which time, applications of nonselective herbicides were made. Visual injury estimates were made, and hyperspectral reflectance data were recorded 1, 4, and 7 d after application (DAA). Several analysis techniques including multiple indices, signature amplitude (SA) with spectral bands as features, and wavelet analysis were used to distinguish between herbicide-treated and nontreated plants. Classification accuracy using SA analysis of paraquat injury on soybean was better than 75% for both 1/2- and 1/8× rates at 1, 4, and 7 DAA. Classification accuracy of paraquat injury on corn was better than 72% for the 1/2× rate at 1, 4, and 7 DAA. These data suggest that hyperspectral reflectance may be used to distinguish between healthy plants and injured plants to which herbicides have been applied; however, the classification accuracies remained at 75% or higher only when the higher rates of herbicide were applied. Applications of a 1/2× rate of glyphosate produced 55 to 81% soybean injury and 20 to 50% corn injury 4 and 7 DAA, respectively. However, using SA analysis, the moderately injured plants were indistinguishable from the uninjured controls, as represented by the low classification accuracies at the 1/8-, 1/32-, and 1/64× rates. The most promising technique for identifying drift injury was wavelet analysis, which successfully distinguished between corn plants treated with either the 1/8- or the 1/2× rates of paraquat compared with the nontreated corn plants better than 92% 1, 4, and 7 DAA. These analysis techniques, once tested and validated on field scale data, may help determine the extent and the degree of herbicide drift for making appropriate and, more importantly, timely management decisions. Nomenclature: Corn, Zea mays L.; soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merr. Additional index words: Glyphosate, hyperspectral imagery, indices, paraquat, ROC curve, wavelet analysis. Abbreviations: DAA, days after application; DINO, differential index of normalized observations; DWT, discrete wavelet transform; EPSP, 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate; LDA, linear discriminant analysis; NDVI, normalized difference vegetation index; NIR, near-infrared; POST, postemergence; ROC, receiver operator characteristics; SA, signature amplitudes.


Despite years of primary research on problem-based learning and literature reviews, no systematic effort has been made to analyze the relationship between tutor characteristics and student learning outcomes. In an effort to fill that gap the following meta-analysis coded 223 outcomes from 94 studies with small but positive gains for PBL students (g = 0.24). Specific sub-group analyses indicate randomly controlled designs may be more sensitive to differences that favor PBL students, even while there is no relationship between tutor content expertise and student learning. Perhaps surprisingly, student learning decreases as tutor experience increases. Limitations and future work are discussed within a context of scholarly and practical significance.


Universities with central research integrity/ethics offices have a unique opportunity to provide global support to research ethics education. However, the totality of university effort in this area cannot reside in these offices if the institutions aspire to successful programs. As research integrity staff, our mission is to direct and conduct the University's program for education and training in the responsible conduct of research, coordinating the implementation of this effort with departments and units within the University, with the objective of ensuring that the responsible conduct of research is maintained at a high priority level in all aspects of research activities. My office develops relationships with units, departments and faculty who have a vested interest in the success of research ethics education at the undergraduate through senior faculty levels. I believe that one of the greatest challenges for research integrity/ethics offices is that of approach. The methodology the office adopts must consider staffing levels, client population and institutional culture.


This thesis explores the question: What are the significant emotional connections between consumers and their furniture, and how do designers engage with this? Due to the nature of the question it has been necessary to explore literature across various different faculties. Therefore the literature review covers a wide spectrum of research and methodologies exploring the significance of the psychological factors (especially emotions) in the designing and consuming of furniture.
This has enabled the author to identify the main factors within the thesis; design, the consumer and emotions each are discussed in detail. The relationships and connections between each are also investigated. The research also identified that due to the various types on furniture available, only one could be evaluated for this thesis; therefore the branch of furniture studied is chairs.
Using the research carried out, a methodology was created in order to carry out a practical exploratory chair study. This involved identifying five categories of chairs, and selecting one from each, and then staging a suitable environment to carry out the trial. Participants were then asked to interact with each chair, whilst at the same time answering an in-depth verbal questionnaire. The purpose of the trial was to establish if each of the chairs evoked any emotional connections to the participants and if so what types of emotion. The results of the trial were then analysed, from which conclusions were able to be deduced and a consequence of the study was discussed.


Background: Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), a rare progressive disease, is characterized by the proliferation of abnormal smooth muscle cells (LAM cells) in the lung, which leads to cystic parenchymal destruction and progressive respiratory failure. Estrogen receptors are present in LAM cells. LAM affects almost exclusively women of childbearing age. These findings, along with reports of disease progression during pregnancy or treatment with exogenous estrogens, have led to the assumption that hormonal factors play an important role in the pathogenesis of LAM. So, various therapies aim at preventing estrogen receptors (ER) by lowering circulating estrogen levels, by trying to block ER activity, or by attempting to lower ER expression in LAM. Prior experience have yielded conflicting results.
Objective: The goal of this study was to evaluate, retrospectively, the effect of estrogen suppression in 21 patients with LAM.
Design: We evaluated hormonal assays, pulmonary function tests and gas-exchange at baseline and after 12, 24 and 36 months after initiating hormonal manipulation.
Results: The mean yearly rates of decline in FEV1 and DLCO are lower than those observed in prior studies and just DLCO decline was statistically significant. We also found an improvement of mean value of FVC and PaO2.
Conclusions: Estrogen suppression appears to prevent decline in lung function in LAM.


Computing the matching statistics of patterns with respect to a text is a fundamental task in bioinformatics, but a formidable one when the text is a highly compressed genomic database. Bannai et al. gave an efficient solution for this case, which Rossi et al. recently implemented, but it uses two passes over the patterns and buffers a pointer for each character during the first pass. In this paper, we simplify their solution and make it streaming, at the cost of slowing it down slightly. This means that, first, we can compute the matching statistics of several long patterns (such as whole human chromosomes) in parallel while still using a reasonable amount of RAM; second, we can compute matching statistics online with low latency and thus quickly recognize when a pattern becomes incompressible relative to the database. Our code is available at https://github.com/koeppl/phoni.


Bed bugs (Cimex spp.) have undergone a global resurgence over the last 15–20 years. They readily bite humans, producing a range of cutaneous reactions. This article documents systemic reactions in two patients following repeated bites from the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius. Both patients had previously fed bed bugs on themselves without any serious complication, however upon feeding a new batch of the insects subsequently developed systemic urticarial reactions. Patient 1 fed 40–50 bed bugs on himself and after 8 min, he developed itch, swelling of the face, lethargy, profuse sweating and widespread wheals on the torso and limbs. The reaction disappeared in 5 h after treatment with systemic prednisone and antihistamines. Patient 2 developed a similar reaction after feeding five to six bed bugs on himself. In this case, the patient also developed chest tightness and breathing difficulties. Following a similar treatment, symptoms disappeared in 4 h. In light of the increasing exposure of this insect to the general public, systemic reactions in patients may present more commonly to the medical practitioner.


Two new computer programs are described. The first, ZEST, predicts the sensitivity of lens performance to perturbations of the constructional parameters of the lens. The second, ZEALOT, predicts the statistical distribution of the performance expected from a sample of actual manufactured lenses. Both programs are based on the wave front and the modulation transfer function and permit a more general approach to lens specification, tolerancing, and testing.


Background With the great advancement of endovascular intervention in the management of both chronic and acute peripheral vascular disease, the need for open surgical intervention has markedly decreased over the past decade; however, in certain cases, a simple surgical intervention remains the only hope for limb saving. In this study, the authors presented a review for the effect of one of the oldest surgical vascular procedures, which is 'profundoplasty' and the authors focused on its role and outcome in cases presented with threatened limb with no distal runoff to the foot. Patients and methods This is a retrospective study conducted on 18 cases presented with 20 threatened limbs with no distal runoff and managed with either isolated profundoplasty or combined with other procedures in the period between May 2016 and May 2018 at the Vascular Surgery Department of Kasr Al Aini with the limb salvage as the end point. Results The study included 18 male patients with mean age of 50 years presented with 20 threatened limbs: 10 patients presented with critical limb ischemia classified according to Rutherford classification between class 4 and 6, and eight patients with 10 delayed acute limb ischemia category IIb (two patients presented with bilateral lower limb affection). Technical success was 100%; two cases of critical limb ischemia ended up with unilateral below-knee amputation, with limb salvage rate of 90%. Conclusion Profundoplasty remains a very effective procedure in the management of lower limb ischemia either acute or chronic, especially when other options cannot be performed and the case seems to be hopeless.


"This picture of Antonio G. Cano was taken in Grand Falls, Texas on December 12, 1914. Her husband, Martin, was a loyal follower of Pancho Villa. They later moved to Grand Falls in 1925." This statement was made by Alma Cano and was included in a research paper by Delfina Heredin for a history class at Marfa High School in 1975.


Voltage rise caused by high levels of distributed generation is manifesting as voltage regulation challenges for many electricity network service providers. In this environment it would be ideal to reduce supply voltage magnitudes, however, many network operators are hesitant to do so due to concerns related to consumer appliance performance at reduced supply voltage magnitudes. Voltage regulation requirements are defined by network standards and network service providers must ensure voltages remain within specified limits. Through an evaluation of domestic appliance performance when supplied at various voltage magnitudes, this paper examines the impact of varying voltage levels on residential appliances. Equipment energy demand, operation and actuation were monitored for each applied voltage magnitude. While no equipment failures were recorded, appliance behaviour varied significantly with applied voltage magnitude. Individual appliance conservation voltage reduction (CVR) factors have also been established. The results highlight the importance of good voltage regulation and provide substantiated appliance performance figures for future studies. The outcomes of this paper allow electricity network service providers to understand the implications of supply voltage magnitude on domestic appliance performance, whether it be understating of the impact of higher voltage magnitudes caused by distributed generation or implications of reducing voltage magnitudes to provide headroom for distributed generation integration.


This essay examines the contemporary controversy concerning democratic sovereignty in a new age and under conditions of nascent legal cosmopolitanism. I contrast the mainly negative conclusions drawn by some political theorists about the possibility of reconciling democratic sovereignty with a transnational legal order to the utopianism of contemporary legal scholarship that projects varieties of global constitutionalism with or without the state. I argue that transnational human rights norms strengthen rather than weaken democratic sovereignty, and name processes through which rights-norms are contextualized in polities "democratic iterations." The challenge is to think beyond the binarisms of the cosmopolitan versus the civic republican; democratic versus the international and transnational; democratic sovereignty versus human rights law. The final sections of the paper focus on the dilemmas of an "authorship model of democratic legitimacy" in the face of post-Westphalian developments.


Studies analysing the pattern of international refugee flows have so far focussed on movements to OECD destinations, even though the vast majority of refugees live in non-OECD countries. Employing a standard gravity model of international migration, we fill this research gap by investigating the impact of destination country characteristics on south-south refugee movements over the period 2004-2019. Our findings suggest that refugees tend to move to safe neighbouring countries but also positively respond to local pull factors such as relatively high per-capita income levels and the availability of education and health services when choosing their country of destination. Donors have the ability to affect the direction of south-south refugee movements by investing in the social infrastructure of potential destination countries.


Ubiquitous information technologies like RFID allow for immediate, extensive and fine-grained capture of real world information. Scalable and efficient networks for exchange of this vast amount of information amongst companies are crucial for the economic exploitation of benefits of ubiquitous information technologies. Existing networks bear several limitations like risks of single-point-offailures or bottlenecks, unequally distributed power and burdens as well as inflexibility through stringent structures and formats. In particular there is a need for improving the scalability of solutions and ensuring autonomy of network participants. In this paper we introduce a Peer-to-Peer-based architecture for exchanging distributed information, which are shared among participants of a supply chain facilitated with ubiquitous information technologies. This architecture builds on the wellestablished EPCglobal standards, but can be implemented as an autonomous network. Unlike other architectures it does not need central coordination mechanisms, because it is based on self-organizing Peer-to-Peer protocols. We argue that our architecture supports business processes especially of small and medium-sized enterprises better than other architectures. We provide a discussion about requirements for solutions and a simulation-based analysis of the proposed architecture.


This study considers male shame in contemporary writing by men, examining why shame is often considered a female emotion and therefore denied in men. The author's comparative approach to the private experience of shame in novels by Hanif Kureishi, Philip Roth and Hubert Klimko-Dobrzaniecki demonstrates the extent to which shame conditions male behaviour, protecting the powerful hierarchies existing between different kinds of masculinities. Using different conceptual analyses, the author exposes the damaging nature of the culturally sanctioned demand that men be «real men», which is often simply a call for violence. The book also examines shame more broadly as a means of social control, whether of women in patriarchal cultures or of people of different ethnic, sexual and class identities. Treating shame as both an individual and a social emotion, the author draws on perspectives from scholarship on shame in postcolonial, gender and feminist studies.


In Chile and Ecuador, multiple hazards and dynamic processes in vulnerability pose a high risk. Spatial planning and emergency management can contribute to disaster risk management but they follow different goals. However, global goals, such as from UN-ISDR (United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction) and UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) can potentially support cities and regions in defining concerted action. This paper aims at measuring the performance of Chile and Ecuador in regard to the aforementioned policy goals. Although both countries show considerable progresses in the implementation of the UN strategies, it is doubtful that the existing global monitoring approach is appropriately designed for measuring the real situation on the ground. Our paper is based on a desktop research combined with stakeholder workshops and expert interviews. Overall, both countries made considerable progress in regard to disaster preparedness and monitoring. However, multi-risks are rarely considered and there is still increasing vulnerability due to the expansion of informal settlements. The risk management is characterized by an imbalanced distribution of financial resources and institutional capacities between the metropolitan regions and smaller municipalities, and by low public participation and hardly community-based approaches. The paper underlines the importance for more qualitative, in-depth studies on the root causes of disaster risk which could complement the global monitoring which is very much focused on quantitative data and shows inconsistency between input and output indicators.


This study investigates the major difficulties experienced and perceived by students of Chinese as an additional language (CAL), as well as the coping strategies they employed. It is a qualitative, 8-week case study that attempts to provide descriptions and analyses of a particular group of learners' learning difficulties ana their coping strategiaL specific contexts. Data include classroom observations, tape recordings, questionnaires, and formal interviews with students. Major questions addressed are twofold: What are the major difficulties in learning CAL, and how do difficulties differ among the learners? How do learners cope with their difficulties and how varied are the strategies among them? It is concluded that depending on the number of variables, different students may experience a variety of difficulties in learning CAL and adopt different coping strategies for the same difficulty. An awareness of this may help the teacher diagnose the students' language learning difficulties more effectively and accordingly provide more effective instruction. Two research questions arise from this study: What are the real obstacles that prevent students from overcoming difficulties no matter how hard they try? Are there any strategies in addition to the ones adopted by the students in this study that can help others overcome their difficulties more efficiently? Thirty-five references and two appendices (the student questionnaire and interview guidelines) are included. (KFT) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. STUDENTS' MAJOR DIFFICULTIES IN LEARNING MANDARIN CHINESE AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE AND THEIR COPING STRATEGIES Jingzi Huang, Monmouth University, NJ


The paper presents a study of single-phase auto-reclosing of the Vietnam 500 kV transmission system. The success of the single-phase auto-reclosing depends on the extinction of the secondary arc. Therefore, the influence of several factors such as shunt and neutral reactors, faulted phase and location, capacitive and inductive couplings and series capacitor discharge on the extinction of the secondary arc is investigated. The paper presents the influence of single-phase auto-reclosing on the transient stability of the Vietnamese power system. Finally, methods to increase the success of the single-phase auto-reclosing scheme also are investigated.


Abstract. The chemistry of snow and ice cores from Svalbard is influenced by variations in local sea ice margin and distance to open water. Snow pits sampled at two summits of Vestfonna ice cap (Nordaustlandet, Svalbard), exhibit spatially heterogeneous soluble ions concentrations despite similar accumulation rates, reflecting the importance of small-scale weather patterns on this island ice cap. The snow pack on the western summit shows higher average values of marine ions and a winter snow layer that is relatively depleted in sulphate. One part of the winter snow pack exhibits a [SO42-/Na+] ratio reduced by two thirds compared with its ratio in sea water. This low sulphate content in winter snow is interpreted as the signature of frost flowers, which are formed on young sea ice when offshore winds predominate. Frost flowers have been described as the dominant source of sea salt to aerosol and precipitation in ice cores in coastal Antarctica but this is the first time their chemical signal has been described in the Arctic. The eastern summit does not show any frost flower signature and we interpret the unusually dynamic ice transport and rapid formation of thin ice on the Hinlopen Strait as the source of the frost flowers.


Algorithms on the internet govern our lives and our realities (Just & Latzer, 2017). They change our perception of the world and affect our behavior by influencing our choices. Consider the selection of online information via search engines, of music and video entertainment content via recommender systems, of products in online shops, or of status messages displayed on social online networks. With their governing power, algorithms on the internet have become an important source and factor of social order in digitized societies (Latzer & Just, 2020).

The benefits of this governance by algorithms in everyday life are accompanied by potential risks like manipulation, bias, discrimination or threats to privacy, which call for an adequate governance of algorithms (Latzer et al., 2016; Saurwein, Just & Latzer, 2015).

The project "The Significance of Algorithmic Selection for Everyday Life: The Case of Switzerland" empirically explores the significance of internet-based applications that build on automated algorithmic selection, essentially defined as the assignment of relevance to selected pieces of information. It provides empirical evidence for assessing the possible risks and the societal groups that may be particularly affected by them. It thereby provides the basis for a more evidence-based governance of algorithms.


It has been proved that Nrf2 depletion enhances inflammatory process through activation of NF-κB in the brain after TBI, but little is known about the relationship between Nrf2 and NF-κB in astrocytes after TBI. Hence, we used primary cultured astrocytes from either Nrf2 wildtype or knockout mice to study the influence of Nrf2 on the activation of NF-κB and expression of proinflammatory cytokines in a model of TBI in vitro. Primary cultured astrocytes were scratched to mimic the traumatic injury in vitro. Then the DNA-binding activity of NF-κB was evaluated by EMSA. The mRNA and protein levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, and MMP9 were also evaluated. Gelatin zymography was performed to detect the activity of MMP9. The activity of NF-κB and expression of proinflammatory cytokines mentioned above were upregulated at 24 h after scratch. The expression and activity of MMP9 were also elevated. And such tendency was much more prominent in Nrf2 KO astrocytes than that in WT astrocytes. These results suggest that the absence of Nrf2 may induce more aggressive inflammation through activation of NF-κB and downstream proinflammatory cytokines in astrocytes.


A problem of risk mitigation in project scheduling is formulated as a bi-objective optimization problem, where the expected makespan and the expected total cost are both to be minimized. The expected total cost is the sum of four cost components: overhead cost, activity execution cost, cost of reducing risks and penalty cost for tardiness. Risks for activities are predefined. For each risk at an activity, various levels are defined, which correspond to the results of different preventive measures. Only those risks with a probable impact on the duration of the related activity are considered here. Impacts of risks are not only accounted for through the expected makespan but are also translated into cost and thus have an impact on the expected total cost. An MIP model and a heuristic solution approach based on genetic algorithms (GAs) is proposed and tested. The experiments conducted indicate that GAs provide a fast and effective solution approach to the proble m. For smaller problems, the results obtained by the GA are very good. For larger problems, there is room for improvement.


An inherited, congenital disorder resembling stiff-man syndrome is described in ten individuals from three generations of a family. The disease is apparently inherited as a dominant trait; x-linkage cannot be excluded. The diagnosis was based on the following criteria; (1) attacks of stiffness precipitated by surprise or minor physical contact; difficulty in sudden movements but absence of signs of myotonia or myokymia; (2) presence of the electromyographic counterpart of the stiffness, continuous activity at rest with normal action potentials; (3) disappearance of the continuous electrical activity after diazepam. The symptoms were most marked in infancy, but ameliorated with time, becoming milder than in the average acquired case. The cause of this familial syndrome is presumably different from that or those of acquired, sporadic cases of stiff-man syndrome.


There is a current focus on job satisfaction and how it is related to occupational injury, specifically musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) since they are the most common injuries employees experience. Job satisfaction has been defined as an employee's satisfaction with the reinforcers found on the job (Weiss, Dawis, England, & Lofquist, 1967). Numerous reinforcers exist, but the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) has been developed to measure what has been found to be most involved in gauging employees' level of job satisfaction.This study attempted to compare the job satisfaction of hospital employees with a history of occupational MSD to their non-injured counterparts. Problems with recruitment, which resulted in a small study sample, forced the specific aims of this study to be modified. The findings showed only a few areas of statistically significant difference between groups of employees in levels of satisfaction for the 21 attributes measured by the MSQ. These findings, however, must be viewed with caution because of the small sample size and subsequent subgroups used for the analyses. Two of the subscales of the MSQ were found to be correlated with age. Isolation of the dissatisfied employees did not indicate that history of MSD was affecting the satisfaction scores of any of the attributes. Results of this study may be useful for rehabilitation counselors working with individuals who are working with individuals who have, or are interested in, careers in healthcare. The attributes seen as high and low satisfaction areas for the study sample may carry over to the general population of healthcare workers, giving some insight into what the client values as important in a job. Differences found between groups may have clinical significance, alerting a counselor to focus more on these areas with certain individuals. Information gained from this study can also assist with the formulation, or modification, of an employee return to work program to increase the chances for a successful return to work.


Consider a two‐dimensional waveguide consisting of a rigid wall and a parallel wall having uniform specific impedance. When the impedance is purely imaginary, the characteristic equation is real. In the springlike case, the eigenvalue of the fundamental mode (defined as the mode that varies most slowly in the transverse direction) is imaginary, whereas all other eigenvalues are real. This type of mode does not exist if the impedance is masslike. Morse and Ingard [Theoretical Acoustics (McGraw‐Hill, New York, 1968), p. 496] fail to recognize the differing behavior of the fundamental mode for either type of lossless impedance, and subsequently no one seems to have rectified this oversight. The fundamental mode in the springlike case behaves much like the plane mode in a hard‐walled waveguide in that it has no cutoff frequency, but the phase speed of this mode is subsonic at all frequencies. Introducing a resistive part to the impedance, corresponding to dissipation at the wall, moves the respective eigenvalues off the real or imaginary axis. The presentation will discuss the phase and group speeds, and the transverse mode shapes, in ideal and lossy cases.


Social engineering is the usage of social manipulation and psychological tricks to make the targets assist offenders in their attack. This practice manifests itself in e.g. phishing emails or cold call telephone scams. The aim of the thesis was to investigate the understanding of social engineering attacks in an organisational setting. In particular, the effectiveness both of the threat and the countermeasures was investigated. Tree kinds of social engineering experiments were performed, each using a different modality (i.e. Face-to-Face (F2F), email and telephone). In each experiment, the targets (i.e. participants) were persuaded to perform actions that contribute to their victimisation. The subjects (N = 162) in the F2F experiment were visited by an offender in their offices and asked them to hand over their office keys. The subjects (N = 593) in the email experiment received a phishing email with the request to provide Personally Identifiable Information (PII). The subjects (N = 92) in the telephone experiment were persuaded to download and execute software from an untrustworthy website. A portion of the participants in both the F2F and telephone experiment received an intervention to reduce victimisation. The result was that 58.62% of those in the F2F experiment complied with the offender, compared to 36.96% who were priorly informed on how to detect and react to social engineering. In the telephone experiment, 40% complied with the offender, compared to 17.2% who received an intervention. Furthermore, 19.3% of those who received a generic phishing email complied, compared to 28.9% that received a spear phishing email. There was no effect of age, sex and using authority on victimisation found, whereas having had an intervention, receiving a spear phishing email and cultural background did have an effect. It is concluded that awareness raising about dangers, characteristics and countermeasures related to social engineering proved to have a significant positive effect on protecting the target. The research also shows that awareness-raising campaigns reduce the vulnerability only in the short term. In phishing emails, the use of a personalised opening sentence increases its success. The results of these experiments allow practitioners to focus awareness campaigns to maximise their effectiveness.


In Sweden, nobody wants a troll to come into their garden, but how do you stop them? On a lonely road at night in Oman, Abdul's car breaks down and he takes a ride with a stranger, but perhaps it is safer to walk. In England some young people play a scary game, and in Asia, a soldier returns home - at last. Every country in the world has stories about ghosts and spirits and monsters of one kind or another. Some people believe in ghosts, and some don't - but everyone enjoys a good ghost story.


Secretory diarrhea remains a global health burden and causes major mortality in children. There have been some focuses on antidiarrheal therapies that may reduce fluid losses and intestinal motility in diarrheal diseases. In the present study, we identified shikonin as an inhibitor of TMEM16A chloride channel activity using cell-based fluorescent-quenching assay. The IC50 value of shikonin was 6.5 μM. Short-circuit current measurements demonstrated that shikonin inhibited Eact-induced Cl- current in a dose-dependent manner, with IC50 value of 1.5 μM. Short-circuit current measurement showed that shikonin exhibited inhibitory effect against CCh-induced Cl- currents in mouse colonic epithelia but did not affect cytoplasmic Ca2+ concentration as well as the other major enterocyte chloride channel conductance regulator. Characterization study found that shikonin inhibited basolateral K+ channel activity without affecting Na+/K+-ATPase activities. In vivo studies revealed that shikonin significantly delayed intestinal motility in mice and reduced stool water content in a neonatal mice model of rotaviral diarrhea without affecting the viral infection process in vivo. Taken together, the results suggested that shikonin inhibited enterocyte calcium-activated chloride channels, the inhibitory effect was partially through inhbition of basolateral K+ channel activity, and shikonin could be a lead compound in the treatment of rotaviral secretory diarrhea.


[ 1 ] We present a study of the sensitivity of isoprene emission calculations in a global chemistry transport model (CTM) to input land cover characteristics and analyze the impacts of changes in isoprene on the tropospheric budgets of atmospheric key species. The CTM Model for Ozone and Related Chemical Species, version 4 (MOZART-4) includes the online calculation of isoprene emissions based on the Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature (MEGAN), which is driven by three different land parameter inputs. We also included a tagging scheme in the CTM, which keeps track of the production of carbon containing species from isoprene oxidation. It is found that the amount of tropospheric carbon monoxide (CO), formaldehyde (HCHO) and peroxyacetylnitrate (PAN) explained by isoprene oxidation ranges from 9–16%, 15–27%, and 22–32%, depending on the isoprene emissions scenario. Changes in the global tropospheric burden with different land cover inputs can reach up to 10% for CO, 15% for HCHO, and 20% for PAN. Changes for ozone are small on a global scale, but regionally differences are as large as 3DU in the tropospheric column and as large as 5 ppbv in the surface concentrations. Our results demonstrate that a careful integration of isoprene emissions and chemistry in CTMs is very important for simulating the budgets of a number of atmospheric trace gases. We further demonstrate that the model tagging scheme has the capability of improving conventional methods of constraining isoprene emissions from space-borne HCHO column observations, especially in regions where a considerable part of the variability in the HCHO column is not related to isoprene.


Falls during pregnancy can be associated with serious obstetric complications. Apart from sparse data highlighting traumatic outcomes, there are no studies identifying the obstetric correlates of maternal falls in Nigeria. A cross-sectional cohort survey of 1,175 women in five public health facilities in Ado–Ekiti was conducted to address this need. Fall rate was 25%; mothers who fell during pregnancy were significantly older, of higher parity, and with unintended/unwanted pregnancies than those who did not fall. Most of the reported falls occurred in the third trimester, with about 10% of the women falling at least thrice during the course of the pregnancy. More than half of the reported falls occurred while engaging in household chores and carrying child/object with compromised visibility of the feet and floor. Uterine contractions/abdominal pain was the commonest; 29 (76.3%), obstetric event attributed to the falls. Antepartum haemorrhage, 4 (10.5%), and ruptured membranes, 2 (5.3%), also occurred after falls, although it was rare and occurred with the same frequency as in the general population. Maternal age ≥ 30 years (odds ratio: 1.36; 95% C.I. 1.03 – 1.80, p = 0.031), multiparity (odds ratio: 1.54; 95% C.I. 1.15 – 2.07, p = 0.004), unintended pregnancy (odds ratio: 1.48; 95% C.I. 1.02 – 2.15, p = 0.037), and delivery age ≤ 40 weeks (odds ratio: 1.71; 95% C.I. 1.07 – 2.75, p = 0.026) were found to be independent risk factors for falls during pregnancy. Fall awareness campaigns and fall-preventing safety tips are advocated in women's clinics. Improving contraceptive uptake will reduce unintended pregnancies and the risk of pregnancy-related fall/injuries.


The hydrolysis of bradykinin and its higher homologues by angiotensin-converting enzyme has been investigated by using an automated ninhydrin technique. The results show an inverse relationship of hydrolysis rate with size and charge of the peptide, which parallels the inactivation in the pulmonary circulation and offers an explanation for the selectivity of metabolism of these kinins by the lungs.


In order to comprehend phenomena of particle movement and accumulation around a dead man in a blast furnace, they were modeled by segregation of solids mixture over an inclined heap surface under multi-point feed. Utilizing a two-dimensional vessel, the flow and packing characteristics over th~ dead man were experimentally and analytically investigated with the lapse of operational time. Thus, varying the feed rate along the heap surface and the composition of the feed mixture, the distributions of the flowing- down velocity and the composition, and its change in the packed zone inside the heap were measured by means of a video system. According to the experiments, the multi-point feed creates increase in the flowing-down velocity along the heap surface and upwards. In case of a static heap, the fraction of a segregating component of lower flowability such as smaller or denser particles exhibits th,e maximum along the surface inside the heap and increases with higher initial mixing fraction and lower feed rate. While, in case of a descending heap, the fractional peak shifts downwards and gets broad with higher descending velocity. Those trends become conspicuous with larger difference in particle size and density, The effects of the feed rate, the feed composition, and the descending speed of the heap were quantita- tively explained on the segregation pattern inside the dead man by expanding Shinohara's screening-layer model for one-point feed to the present situation of multi-point one.


An atomic-oxygen beam source with compact ECR plasma was successfully investigated. The microwave was produced and transmitted in a coaxial mode, and coupled with the loop. The plasma was produced at a higher asymmetry magnetic mirror field, and neutralized with the molybdenum target at a lower asymmetry magnetic mirror field. The magnetic field was constituted with permanent magnets. This source has a higher flux density of atom beam, a lower operating pressure, a smaller power consumption and low-cost. When it was installed at the equipment to study the interaction of the beam with the surface, the operation was carried out very easily and with a good stability.


The OSPAR Revised Eutrophication Monitoring Programme (ETG 05/3/Info.1-E)requests that nutrient "monitoring should include sufficient samples to confirm that themaximum winter nutrient concentration has been determined", while para. 7 of theTerms of Reference for the preparation of guidance on the spatial and temporalresolution of monitoring for nutrients and eutrophication effects (ICG 003) states that"there are at least nine different water types covered by the OSPAR MaritimeArea"…"guidance must, therefore, be at least complex enough to cover each type withsufficient clarity to guide contracting parties in their evaluation of the temporal andspatial coverage required to adequately assess the relevant water body".This document summarises the national reports submitted to the OSPAR IntersessionalCorrespondence Group on Eutrophication Monitoring, and highlights commonproblems faced in the monitoring of (primarily) inorganic nutrients and chlorophyll. Inaddition, it presents tests of different approaches to solving the spatial and temporalsampling problems associated with delivering marine eutrophication data.Based on tests of model data, monthly sampling appears adequate to give a goodestimate of annual mean concentrations. Buoy data suggests that this would not besufficient where there is tidal variability. It was not possible to determine maximumconcentrations through a practical ship sampling scheme, or by using extreme valuestatistics.The optimum sampling programme to observe rapid events is likely to be a combinationof ferrybox systems, which appear to be reliable and give both good spatial andtemporal coverage, combined with buoy observations. To ensure data of sufficientquality, these must be controlled against conventional research vessel observations.Research vessels still have a role in seasonal mapping, and in providing data ofsufficient quality for trend analysis from a large area. This is likely to remain so, at leastuntil technologies such as gliders and optical nutrient sensors become widely availableand capable of delivering reliable, high quality data.


Gestures provide a rich and intuitive form of interaction for controlling robots. This paper presents an approach for controlling a mobile robot with hand gestures. The system uses hidden Markov models (HMMs) to spot and recognize gestures captured with a data glove. To spot gestures from a sequence of hand positions that may include nongestures, we have introduced a "wait state" in the HMM. The system is currently capable of spotting six gestures reliably. These gestures are mapped to robot commands under two different modes of operation: local and global control. In the local control mode, the gestures are interpreted in the robot's local frame of reference, allowing the user to accelerate, decelerate, and turn. In the global control mode, the gestures are interpreted in the world frame, allowing the robot to move to the location at which the user is pointing.


Objectives This study aims to identify the sources of funding for investigator-initiated clinical trials (IICTs) in Portugal, and to recommend ways to improve the quality of information collected from clinical trial databases about funding. Design and methods A systematic search of trial registrations over the last 13 years—using the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (WHO-ICTRP) and four clinical trials registries (CTRs)—was carried out to identify IICTs in Portugal, used as a case study. Data from the databases were compared with data contained in publications to evaluate the consistency of information on funding sources. The term 'database' is used in this study to refer to both the WHO-ICTRP and the CTRs. When mentioned separately, the WHO-ICTRP is referred to as a 'platform', while the CTRs are referred to as 'registries'. Outcome Suggestions to improve clinical trials databases to clearly identify the funding sources and data ownership in IICTs. Results Two hundred and eighty-two IICTs were identified in Portugal. Twenty per cent of trials were supported by industry with unclear information on the ownership of the results. Inaccuracy was found in the information about sponsors and funders. The information about funding in all resulting publications (77 out of 133 completed studies) was also inconsistent between databases in 35 out of 77 (45%) of the studies. Notably, 23% of the trials funded by non-profit organisations (n=226) received funds from international and/or national funding agencies. Conclusions Identification of IICT funding and ownership of results is unclear in the databases used for this study, which may lead to misunderstandings about the independence of the obtained results. Transparency and accuracy are desirable so that public decision makers and strategic partners can accurately evaluate national performance in this particular type of clinical research.


In era of technology, social media has brought a dynamic alteration in trade, hence has forced the marketers to contemplate on techniques to use it effectively. This research intends to observe the influence of brand awareness and word-of-mouth on the purchase decision of women in Pakistan. The data was collected through a survey, which consisted of 200 female respondents of all ages and socio-economic classes who used social media. Regression was used for the data analysis with the help of SPSS version 19.0. It was evident from the results that there is a positive impact of brand awareness and word of mouth on the buying behavior of Pakistani female customers. Based on the findings, this study can be helpful for the enterprises who are willing to better their promotions.


In recent years various studies have examined the factors that may explain academic patents. Existing analyses have also underlined the substantial differences to be found in European countries in the institutional framework that defines property rights for academic patents. The objective of this study is to contribute to the empirical literature on the factors explaining academic patents and to determine whether the incentives that universities offer researchers contribute towards explaining the differences in academic patenting activity. The results of the econometric analysis for the Spanish universities point towards the conclusion that the principal factor determining the patents is funding of R&D while royalty incentives to researchers do not appear to be significant.


We use value-added models to calculate measures of effectiveness for new elementary school teachers Florida between 2001-02 and 2005-06, then compare the attrition and mobility patterns of more and less effective teachers overall and across various types of schools. While we do not find evidence that schools are disproportionately losing their most effective early career teachers, our data nonetheless suggest that there is considerable room for schools to raise student achievement and close achievement gaps through targeted policies aimed at retaining only their most effective performers. A clear majority of the state's most effective teachers do not remain in their initial schools only four years into their career, and these same teachers are no less likely to leave the profession altogether than are the least effective. Schools with high- performing students do a far better job than most of retaining their most effective teachers and dismissing the least effective.


Previous reports of the influence of UGT1A1 gene polymorphisms on the pharmacokinetics of irinotecan metabolism have not assessed Asian patients treated with FOLFIRI plus bevacizumab for advanced and recurrent colorectal cancer. Twenty‐one Japanese colorectal cancer patients received intravenous FOLFIRI (bolus irinotecan, folinic acid, and fluorouracil followed by 46‐hour fluorouracil infusion) followed by bevacizumab (5 mg/kg) in Cycle 1. In Cycle 2, patients received bevacizumab followed by FOLFIRI. The regimen was in 2‐week cycles. The area under‐the‐curves ratio (AUC0–last) (Cycle 2/Cycle 1) was determined from plasma concentrations of irinotecan and metabolites (SN‐38, SN‐38G). Safety, efficacy, and drug–drug interactions were analyzed. Median observation period was 7.8 months; median number of cycles 15. Drug–drug interactions were evaluated in eight patients without irinotecan dose reduction. Mean AUC0–last ratios (with/without bevacizumab) of irinotecan, SN‐38, and SN‐38G were 0.959, 0.927, and 0.931 respectively. Response rate was 65%; median progression‐free survival 16.4 months. Response occurred in four patients with, and nine without, UGT1A1 polymorphism. No significant differences occurred between efficacy, safety, or polymorphism status. This cohort showed no differences in safety or efficacy compared to previous reports. Bevacizumab did not affect the pharmacokinetics of irinotecan and its metabolites, irrespective of UGT1A1 polymorphism status.


This article reevaluates the work of Michel Foucault and Norbert Elias, in so far as it relates to criminal justice history. After an examination of the content of Foucault's Surveiller et punir (1975), it discusses Foucault's receptions among criminal justice historians. Some of the latter appear to have attributed views to the French philosopher that are not backed up by his 1975 study. Notably the "revisionist" historians of prisons have done so. As a preliminary conclusion, it is posited that Foucault and Elias have more in common than some scholars, including the author in earlier publications, have argued. They resemble each other to the extent that they both thought it imperative to analyze historical change in order to better understand our own world.   Nevertheless, Elias is to be preferred over Foucault when it concerns (1) the pace of historical change and (2) these theorists' conception of power. It is demonstrated that Foucault's notion of an abrupt and total change of the penal system between 1760 and 1840 is incongruent with reality and leads to ad hoc explanations. Rather, a long-term change occurred from about 1600 onward, while several elements of the modern penal system (as claimed by Foucault) did not become visible until after 1840. With respect to the concept of power, Elias and Foucault converge again on one crucial point: the notion of the omnipresence of power. However, whereas Elias defines power as a structural property of every social relationship and acknowledges its two-sidedness, Foucault's concept of power has a more top-down character, and he often depicts power as an external force that people have to accommodate. Although Foucault's notion of the interconnectedness of power and knowledge is valuable, Elias has a more encompassing view of sources of power.


This study fills an important gap in the literature by developing a conceptual model that links salesperson empathy and listening skills to three outcome variables. Responses from a mail survey of 162 buyers from a variety of business organizations were used to test this model using structural equation modeling. The model has an excellent fit (X2 = 1.511, GFI = 0.99, AGFI = 0.94), and indicates a strong positive relationship between empathy and the following: salesperson listening, trust in the salesperson, and satisfaction with the salesperson. Also, listening is positively related to buyer's trust in and satisfaction with the salesperson, but not with future interaction expectations. Trust in and satisfaction with the salesperson were positively related to future interaction expectations.